Ice update: There are reports that ice is forming at Pineview, but it is not stable. Use extreme caution.

Ice update: On December 21, Echo Reservoir was completely iced over. Use extreme caution out on the ice.

Dec 23:

Strawberry has ice! There is new ice over the entire visible reservoir. Bays are solid and should support fishing. There may be spots of week ice over the main lake and so use extreme caution as you venture out. Fishing should be very good.

Utah DWR 12-20:

Ice update: The ice at Birch Creek is reported to be 3 to 5 inches thick. Fishing is fair for rainbows during the morning hours.

Ice update: Mantua Reservoir is entirely covered with a thin layer of new ice. Use extreme caution when checking the ice.

Ice update: Cutler Reservoir is entirely covered with a thin layer of new ice. Use extreme caution when checking the ice.

Ice update: Newton Reservoir is entirely covered with a thin layer of new ice. Use extreme caution when checking the ice.

The Bryce Canyon Winter Festival has something for everyone. There will be free clinics, demos and tours. Events may be subject to change due to snow and weather conditions, but the Bryce Canyon Winter Festival will be held regardless of snow conditions.

"Both of these waters provide good fishing for big tiger trout," Cushing says.

Lake trout

Flaming Gorge Reservoir

Fish Lake

"You have a good chance to catch some big fish at these waters," he says.

Burbot

Flaming Gorge Reservoir

Crappie

Pineview Reservoir

Cushing says crappie can be tricky to catch. "They suspend at various depths," he says, "so they can be tough to find.

"But if you catch a crappie at a certain depth, keep fishing that depth," he says, "and you should do well. Pineview has a good population of crappie."

Kokanee salmon

Causey Reservoir, and Porcupine Reservoir

Cushing says the best ice fishing for kokanee salmon happens at the two waters at the start of the ice fishing season. "When ice first forms on these waters," he says, "salmon fishing can be fantastic for about two to three weeks."

Ice update: There are reports that ice is forming at Pineview, but it is not stable. Use extreme caution.

Ice update: On December 21, Echo Reservoir was completely iced over. Use extreme caution out on the ice.

Dec 23:

Strawberry has ice! There is new ice over the entire visible reservoir. Bays are solid and should support fishing. There may be spots of week ice over the main lake and so use extreme caution as you venture out. Fishing should be very good.

Utah DWR 12-20:

Ice update: The ice at Birch Creek is reported to be 3 to 5 inches thick. Fishing is fair for rainbows during the morning hours.

Ice update: Mantua Reservoir is entirely covered with a thin layer of new ice. Use extreme caution when checking the ice.

Ice update: Cutler Reservoir is entirely covered with a thin layer of new ice. Use extreme caution when checking the ice.

Ice update: Newton Reservoir is entirely covered with a thin layer of new ice. Use extreme caution when checking the ice.

Loa – Trout from the Loa State Fish Hatchery will be stocked soon into waters in Utah that already have New Zealand mud snails in them.

A news release the Division of Wildlife Resources sent on Aug. 31 left some anglers with the impression that trout from the hatchery wouldn’t be stocked until next spring.

Terry Howick, fish culture supervisor for the DWR, says mud snails have been found in the hatchery, and the hatchery is under what Howick calls a “limited quarantine.”

“A limited quarantine means fish from the hatchery will be stocked only in waters that currently have mud snails in them,” Howick says. “And this stocking will occur only after the hatchery fish are subjected to a strict invasive species protocol we’ve put in place.”

The protocol the DWR is following is the same protocol it used when mud snails were found at the hatchery in 2007:

Before any of the trout are stocked in the wild, the fish will be isolated from the other trout in the hatchery for four days. During that four-day period, the isolated fish will not be fed. By the time the four days are over, any mud snails the fish might have ingested will be expelled from the fish.

At that point, the fish should be free of snails. And that means snails from the hatchery won’t be passed into the waters where the fish are placed.

“This is a proven method that we’ve used before,” Howick says, “and it works. But we’re still not taking any chances. Until mud snails are eradicated from Loa, fish from the hatchery will be stocked only in waters that already have mud snails in them.”

Howick says it will take about four to five months to disinfect the hatchery and rid it of the snails. Once this occurs, the hatchery will return to its normal stocking operations, placing fish in waters that it normally stocks.

The Loa hatchery is in the town of Loa, about 40 miles southeast of Richfield. Most of the trout the hatchery raises are typically placed in waters in southern Utah.

Howick says anglers who fish waters that have been stocked by Loa shouldn’t notice any difference in the number of fish that are available to them over the next four to five months. He says stocking schedules among the Loa hatchery and the DWR’s other hatcheries will be adjusted to provide waters Loa has stocked with plenty of fish:

Waters that don’t have mud snails in them, but used to receive fish from Loa, will receive fish from other hatcheries for the next four to five months.

For the next four to five months, fish from the Loa hatchery will be placed only in waters that have mud snails in them, including waters that are currently being stocked by other hatcheries.

Preventing their spread

New Zealand mud snails are just one of several aquatic invasive species (AIS) that have made their way into Utah.

All of the New Zealand mud snails that are found in Utah are female and reproduce asexually. Because they’re asexual, only one snail is required to establish a new colony. One snail can produce hundreds of young every year. And the snails are very effective at colonizing new waters.

There’s good news, though: There are several things you can do to avoid bringing snails into Utah from outside the state and to avoid transporting them from one body of water in Utah to another:

Disinfect your fishing equipment.

To remove the mud snails, scrub your waders with a brush, and then rinse them with water from the stream. Make sure you remove the laces from your wading boots so you can clean under them.

See “The Wild World of Predators” in Wildlife Building at Utah State Fair

Salt Lake City -- There will be plenty to do in and around the Wildlife Building at this year’s Utah State Fair.

Kids can catch fish at a fishing pond. Inside the building, you can see fish from across Utah in the building’s aquariums and learn more about Utah’s predators by touring “The Wild World of Predators” display. And a group from Earthwings will provide a bird show in front of the building every evening at 7 p.m.

In addition to live fish, tarantulas and reptiles, a full-size eagle’s nest, a replica of a bat cave and many other exhibits and taxidermy animals are waiting for you inside the building.

“The building is full of cool stuff about Utah’s wildlife,” says Patricia Engel, events coordinator for the Division of Wildlife Resources.

When it’s open

The 2012 Utah State Fair runs from Sept. 6 – 16. The Wildlife Building will be open every day of the fair.

The fishing pond on the south side of the building will also be open from 4 to 7 p.m. every day of the fair. Anyone 13 years of age and younger can fish at the pond. Anglers who are 12 or 13 years old must have a fishing license, though.

The DWR puts the exhibit in the Wildlife Building together every. DWR personnel staff the building and the fishing pond.

The Utah State Fairpark is at 155 N. 1000 W. in Salt Lake City. More information about the 2012 fair is available at www.utahstatefair.com.

Using ideas they received from more than 1,300 anglers last spring, fisheries biologists are recommending some fishing changes in Utah in 2013. The following are among the proposed changes:

Allow anglers to have up to three hooks on their fishing line.

Currently, Lake Powell and Flaming Gorge are the only waters in Utah at which anglers can use up to three hooks.

Drew Cushing, warm water sport fisheries coordinator for the Division of Wildlife Resources, thinks walleye, bass and fly anglers are among those who will be excited about the proposed change.

“Some of the more experienced fly anglers are using a rig that consists of a large fly with nymph ‘trailers’ attached to it,” Cushing says. “Allowing them to fish three trailers, instead of two, will give them a better chance to catch fish.”

Cushing says bass and walleye anglers are starting to use umbrella rigs. An umbrella rig consists of two or more lures that are attached together. As the rig is pulled through the water, it imitates a small school of fish swimming together.

“Just like with fly anglers,” Cushing says, “allowing bass and walleye anglers to use three hooks will give them a better chance to catch fish.”

Umbrella rigs often include more than three lures. If the change is approved, only three of the lures in a rig could have hooks on them. “If only three of the lures had hooks on them,” Cushing says, “the rig would still be very effective.”

Umbrella rigs and worm harnesses are currently sold in Utah, but they’re not legal to use in the state if they have more than two hooks. “This change would make it legal to use umbrella rigs and worm harnesses that have up to three hooks,” Cushing says.

Allow archers to use bows and arrows to fish for common carp in shallow water at night.

Currently, bow fishing for common carp is allowed only during the day.

Cushing says anything that can legally be done to remove carp is a good thing. “Carp populations grow quick,” he says, “and they’ll eat anything, so they compete for food with all of the other fish in the water.”

Also, carp grow fast. They don’t stay small long enough to provide adequate forage for other fish. “And that isn’t all,” Cushing says. “Carp stir up the mud on the bottom of the waters they’re in. They also feed on and damage aquatic plants. The mud they stir up prevents sunlight from reaching the plants. The damaged plants can’t repair themselves, and new plants can’t grow.”

Cushing says 1,367 anglers responded to a survey that was available on the DWR’s website from mid May to mid June.
Because of how the survey was conducted (for example, it was offered online to anyone who wanted to take it), Cushing says the survey isn’t statistically valid, and it doesn’t represent every angler in Utah. But he’s still excited about the number of anglers who responded to the survey and the ideas they shared.

Learn more, share your ideas

All of the fishing changes the DWR is recommending for 2013 are available at www.wildlife.utah.gov/public_meetings. After you’ve reviewed the ideas, you can let your Regional Advisory Council members know your thoughts by attending your upcoming RAC meeting or by sending an email to them. RAC chairmen will share the input they receive with members of the Utah Wildlife Board. The board will meet in Salt Lake City on Nov. 1 to approve fishing rules in Utah for 2013.

The Loa State Fish Hatchery is under temporary quarantine, the Division of Wildlife Resources announced Aug. 31.

The quarantine comes after aquatic invasive species (AIS) biologists with the DWR found tiny New Zealand mud snails at the hatchery. They found the snails during a routine inspection of the hatchery in mid August.

“We’re not sure how snails found their way into the hatchery again,” says Terry Howick, fish culture supervisor for the DWR. “The number of snails is fairly small, but they’re widespread throughout the hatchery.”

This is the second time mud snails have been found in the Loa hatchery. The first time was in 2007.

As it did in 2007, Howick says the DWR has placed the hatchery under quarantine. And it will stay under quarantine until the mud snails are removed.
Howick says it will take about four to five months to disinfect the hatchery.

“We’ve found mud snails in the hatchery two times in the last five years,” Howick says. “Even though it’s rare for a fish to pass a live mud snail into the water, we’re not going to take any chances. From now on, fish from Loa will be placed only in waters that already have New Zealand mud snails in them.”

The Loa hatchery is in the town of Loa, about 40 miles southeast of Richfield. Most of the trout the hatchery raises are typically placed in waters in southern Utah.
Howick says stocking schedules among the Loa hatchery and the DWR’s other hatcheries will be adjusted. Waters that don’t have mud snails in them, but used to receive fish from Loa, will now receive fish from other hatcheries.

“In return,” he says, “fish from the Loa hatchery will be placed only in waters that have mud snails in them, including waters that are currently being stocked by other hatcheries.”

Preventing their spread

New Zealand mud snails are just one of several AIS that have made their way into Utah.

All of the New Zealand mud snails that are found in Utah are female and reproduce asexually. Because they’re asexual, only one snail is required to establish a new colony. One snail can produce hundreds of young every year. And the snails are very effective at colonizing new waters.

There’s good news, though: There are several things you can do to avoid bringing AIS into Utah from outside the state and to avoid transporting it from one body of water in Utah to another:
To disinfect your equipment, scrub it with a brush and rinse it with water from the stream to remove the mud snails. Make sure you remove the laces from your boots so you can clean under them. After you’ve scrubbed your boots, repeatedly spray your wading boots and equipment with Formula 409 All-Purpose Cleaner, keeping it damp with the 409 disinfectant for 10 minutes. (Formula 409 All-Purpose Cleaner contains an ammonium compound that kills New Zealand mud snails).

After you've sprayed your equipment with Formula 409 All-Purpose Cleaner, let it dry in the sun for an hour before re-using it. This process will kill any snails you can’t see.
If you’re fishing on a river or stream, disinfect your waders and gear before moving to a different stretch of the same river to fish.

New Zealand mud snails
AIS are destructive plants and animals. In other states, they’ve already ruined fishing and affected boating and recreational activities in waters they’ve infested.
New Zealand mud snails arrived in North America from New Zealand in 1987 when they were discovered in Idaho.

Biologists believe they traveled to Idaho in damp felt on the soles of an angler's wading boots. That seems to be the primary way they’ve been spread in the West.
Once the snails arrived, their populations exploded, literally covering the bottom of lakes and streams by the millions where they were introduced.

You can beat the heat, have fun and enjoy breathtaking scenery by grabbing your fishing pole and heading to Utah’s mountains.

Paul Birdsey, cold water sport fisheries coordinator for the Division of Wildlife Resources, says some of the best summer fishing in Utah is found at high-elevation waters in the state. Those waters include lakes in the Uinta Mountains in northern Utah and the Boulder Mountains down south.

Birdsey says trout feed actively when the water temperature is between
55 and 65 degrees. “Fifty five to 65 degrees is the ideal water temperature for trout,” he says. “It’s also the water temperature the high-elevation lakes remain at throughout the summer. That’s the main reason they’re such great places to fish.”

Uinta Mountains, Boulder Mountains

While high-elevation waters throughout Utah provide quality fishing in the summer, the Uinta Mountains and the Boulder Mountains are among the best places to try.

If you visit the Uinta Mountains in northern and northeastern Utah, you’ll find a wide variety of opportunities. Those opportunities range from lakes next to state Route 150 (the Mirror Lake Highway) that are stocked with fish weekly to backcountry lakes that you have to hike or ride a horse to reach.

“The lakes next to Route 150 are great places to take your family fishing,” Birdsey says.

The lakes on the Boulder Mountains in southern Utah are usually harder to reach. But the lakes on the Boulders are more productive and usually produce bigger fish. “Some of the lakes on the Boulder Mountains provide really, really nice fish,” Birdsey says.

Catching fish

Birdsey provides the following tips to help you catch fish and have a great experience:

Fish early in the morning or later in the day

Birdsey says trout rely mostly on their eyes to find their prey. That fact directly affects when you should fish for them.

“Trout feed most actively when they can see their prey clearly,”
Birdsey says, “but too much sunlight exposes them to predators.”

For that reason, Birdsey says early morning and before the sun goes down at night are the perfect times to fish. “There’s enough light for the trout to see their prey but not enough light to make the trout highly visible to predators,” he says.

Flies, lures and baits

Birdsey says fly fishing with a pattern that imitates a leech is one of the best ways to catch trout on the Uintas and the Boulders. He says leech patterns in brown, black or olive drab usually work best.

Another effective fly fishing technique is paying attention to the type of insects that are hatching and then “matching the hatch” by using a fly that imitates the insects.

If you’d rather fish with spinning gear, spinners are great lures to try. Birdsey recommends a Mepps, Panther Martin or Blue Fox spinner in sizes #0 or #1.

Buy spinners that are gold, black or silver in color.

Birdsey says brook, cutthroat and tiger trout are the trout you’ll find the most on the Uintas and the Boulders. “All of these species are more aggressive than the rainbow trout most anglers are used to fishing for,” he says. “A lure that flashes quickly through the water -- like a spinner -- is something brooks, cutthroats and tigers will go after.”

If you’d like to fish with bait, Birdsey says night crawlers are usually the best bait to try. You can cast the night crawler, and then let it sink to the bottom of the water you’re fishing. Or, you can cast it and a bobber, and let the night crawler dangle two or three feet under the bobber. “Whichever way you fish it,” he says, “don’t let the night crawler just sit there. Cast it out, and then slowly reel it in.”

No matter which tactic you use, if you haven’t gotten a bite within 20 minutes, change what you’re doing. Try a different fly, lure or bait, switch how quick or slow you’re reeling your bait or lure in, or move to a different location.

“In August,” he says, “it almost always rains in the Uintas for an hour or two. The rain usually starts between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. It usually doesn’t rain for long, but the rain can come down quick.”

Pack it in, pack it out

Some of the high-elevation waters, especially those close to Route 150, attract a lot of people. Unfortunately, they also attract a lot of trash. Birdsey encourages you to leave the area better than you found it.

“In addition to picking up your own trash, including fishing line and fishing tackle you’ve discarded,” he says, “bring along an extra garbage bag, and pick up the trash others have left behind.”

Free “Lakes of the High Uintas” booklets

A series of DWR booklets titled “Lakes of the High Uintas” is an excellent source of information about fishing the Uintas. You can get the booklets for free by:

Each booklet choice has a links icon. Click on the icon to read the booklet you want to read.

Six of the booklets are also available at the DNR Map & Bookstore. The booklets cost $2 each.

You can order the booklets online at www.mapstore.utah.gov or get them at the bookstore. The store is at 1594 W. North Temple in Salt Lake
City.

More information

Other good sources of information include maps of both the Uintas and the Boulders. Maps are available at the DNR Map & Bookstore and U.S.
Forest Service offices. The best topographical maps to buy are 7.5 minute quad maps.

You can also learn more about fishing the Uintas and the Boulders, and stay current on fishing conditions and success, by reading the DWR’s weekly fishing reports at www.wildlife.utah.gov/hotspots.

Online fishing forums, such as utahwildlife.net and bigfishtackle.com, are also good sources of information. Sporting goods stores are also good places to contact.

You can also contact the DWR office in Ogden at (801) 476-2740, the DWR office in Vernal at (435) 781-9453 or the DWR office in Cedar City at
(435) 865-6100 for more information.